Process of making producer gas



vJam. 14, 1930. H. NIELSEN EIAL PR OCESS OF MAKING PRODUCER G AS Filed Aug. 9. 1924 2' Sheets-Shee 1 Jan. 14, 1930.

H. NIELSEN ET AL PROCESS OF MAKING PRODUCER GAS Filed Aug. 9, "1924 2 Sheets -She 2 Patented Jan, 14, 1930 UNITED STATES OFFICE HARALD NIELSEN, OF MUSWELL HILL, LONDON, AND BBYA N LAING, F HATFIELD,

ENGLAND PROCESS OF MAKING 'PRODUCER GAS Application filed August 9, 1924, Serial No. 731,227, and in Great Britain August 17, 1923.

This invention relates to theprocess of making producer gas by the gasification, distillation or treatment of carbonaceous and other materials, the chief object of the invention being to manufacture producer gas from powdered,'dusty or pulverized carbonaceous materials such as coal, lignite,

peat, wood or sawdust, and the like; other objects are to effect the reduction of ores or to treat sewage with the object of recovering the valuable 'volatilizable constituents contained therein.

During the manufacture of ordinary producer gas, as is well understood, an incandescent fuel bed is maintained through which a so-called blast, that is to say, an air or steam mixture, passes.

The resultant reaction between the free carbdn and the so-called combined oxygen (e. g. H O or CO being endothermic, any

deficiency in heat is made good by oxidizing or completely combusting part .of the carbon into 00 and to this end and bymeans of an air blast the carbon is first converted into CO by reacting with the oxygen; the

' CO or a part of the same correspondin to the so-called reaction equilibrium in the uel bed, being thereafter reduced by the mean descent carbonto Q0. The various reactions can be successfullyordinary producers.

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According to the present invention a gaseous medium is passed through or brought into contact with the material to be treated,

said medium being under suficient pressure, or havin sufiicient speed to penetrate or agitate t e material and if desired, being also adapted to heat the mater al to the desired reaction tern erature. To this end the necessary oxygen in the form offree air, or

need not: be high steam, or a mixture thereof, is caused to enter at one end of a suitable apparatus and to carry with it suficient powdered fuel to maintain the desired reaction temperature, the fuel being completely combusted into CO or to any required extent, so that any requisite temperature is obtained, whilst at the opposite end of the apparatus, the bal-- ance of the fuel, that is to say the reducing fuel, is caused to enter in a powdered or more or less finely divided state and to travel folward in counter-current to the hot gases, so that, as coking proceeds and the fuel becomes less and less active, higher temperatures are provided for the necessary reaction. This method may be carried on, for example, in an apparatus of somewhat similar con struction to a rotary kiln of the kind usually employed for roasting or calcining cement or ores, the blast, which carries with it the owdered fuel employed to sustain the comustion temperature, being admitted at one end of the fuel being red in at the opposite end gas producer. Owing to this arrangement and as the fuel travels forward to meet the combustion gases, gradually increasing temperatures are reached and the fuel enters progressively hotter and still hotter zones, thus compensat ng continuously for more slu gish -activ1ty. The gas producer'may e prov ded with shelves or the lilre in order to p ck up the fuel, and allow the same to fall through the hot ases continuously until the reaction is comp eted and only ashes in a fused state remain. ()Wingto the long duration of contact obtained in this manner, the various reactions take place in the most suitable temperature zones, and, furthermore, as the gases are not required to carry the fuel forward by their velocity their speed consequently very little unconsumed car on or-dust will be carried forward through the condensing. lant or other apparatus through which t e gases ma eventually ass. he gas pr ucer or the lining'thereof may be provided'with channels or tubular passages through which the blast, or the steam and air mixture, may pass in order to as producer and the reducing,

preheat the same to any desired temperature before entering the combustion zone.

Alternatively, the gas producer may be provided with an annular jacket which may serve the same purpose, or the steam and fair mixture may be preheated, either together or'separately. The blast may enter the gas producer at one end thereof or be blown in radially 'or otherwise through passages in the walls. a 3

In order that the said invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect the same will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which: v

Figure 1 is a part sectional elevation of a gas producer adapted to carry out the process of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a section on the line 22of m Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a section on the line 33 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectlon of a modified type of producer.

Figure 5 is a section on the line of Figure 4. Referring to Figures 1 to 3, A is the body of the gas producer. B is the fire brick lining thereof, and a is a space left between the outer wall of the producer and the 1111181 lining B through which the air is adapted to pass so that it may become preheated before entering the producer. 6 are passages formed in the refractory inner lining through which steam is caused to pass so that it may also become superheated before entering the producer through the lnlets 12 The producer is inclined from the nlet to the outlet end thereof and is provided as usual with runner bands (1, a, and any usual form of driving mechanism is provided so that a continuous rotary motion can be imparted to it. C is a hopper which contains the supply of powdered reducing fuel which is to undergo treatment within the as producer and C is a screw conveyor.

or conveying the material into the interior of the producer. b are shelves or pro ection s' disposed around the inner wall of the producer so as toassist in lifting and showering the powdered material as it passes from the inlet to the outlet end of the producer. D is the openmgat the opposite end of the producer through WhlCh the suppl of powdered fuel which is to be comb is entered, the said material being blown in b means of a blower or otherwise. is a an oi-blower which causes a supply of air to enterthe annular chamber 0 and thereafter to pass along the" space a between the inner and outer wallsof the producer and to enter throulgh passages a the enlarged compartment at one end thereof within which combustion of the -pcwirde'red fuel takes place. F is a waste periodically through a valve S heat boiler heated by part of the gases generated from the carbonaceous materials undergoing treatment within the retort and f is a steam pipe for leading off a quantity of the steam from the boiler F to an annular chamber f from which steam passes, through the passages b, b, and enters the gas producenthrough the inlets b 6 The gases leave the gas producer through a passage G disposed concentrically with the casing which contains the conveyor C.

Llhe ash passes up the inclined surface S and when the valve S is opened it enters an annular space S from which it is discharged It will be understood that the valves S and S are to be operated alternately so as to prevent air entering the retort during the discharge of the ash therefrom.

In operation a supply of powdered fuel is blown in through the opening D and combustion takes E of the gas producer, a suitable volume of air being admitted for the purpose of promoting combustion. Steam may also be admltted at the same time in order to control the temperature of the combustion and to be subsequently dissociated into H and 0 by the hot carbon. The products end of the producer through which a supply of the powdered fuel is continuously being fed from the hopper C. As the powdered fuel travels forward to meet the combustion gases gradually increasing temperatures are reached and the fuel enters progressively hotter and still hotter zones. A long duratlon of contact is thus obtained and various reactions take place in the most suitable temperature zones. As the combustion gases are not requ1red to carrythe fuel forward by their velocity their speed need not be high. Consequently, very little unconsumed carbon or dust will be carried forward throu h the condensing plant throu h which the gases also eventually pass. I desired, however, a dust extractor can be provided and located at the point G so as to extract dust from the gases before a portion thereof enters the main Gr leading to the condensers, and the like, and the main F leading to the waste heat boiler F.

In the modified arrangement shown at F gures 4 and 5, H is the body of the inclmed retort, the upper end of which is pro- Y1d ed W1th projecting bafiles one of which is indicated at H, each having at its extremity a curved shelf H which serves to lift up and shower the material during the continuous rotation of the producer. I is the enlarged chamber at one end of the gas producer within which combustion of the powdered fuel takes place. J is thedust extractor through which the gases pass before entering the ues k, of the waste heat boiler place within the enlarged part of combus- .t1on are carried forward towards the front K. As shown, the boiler K has indirect heat exchange, the gas passing therefrom through an outlet at the upper end. In this instance the supply of powdered fuel which is to be, consumed at one end of the producer is contained within a hopper L and is fed through a rotary valve Z into a passage Z where by means of a blower Z it is blown into the enlarged part I of the producer together with the requisite supply of air. I is a steam pipe by which a suitable volume of steam taken from the boiler K can be mingled with the air and powdered fuel which enter the chamber I. The operation of thisembodiment of the appartus is similar to that described with reference to Figures 1 to 3, the main supply of powdered fuel entering the .gas producer from a hopper M through a rotary valve m into a conduit m and from thence into the producer. m is a tube disposed around the entrance conduit m through which the gases leave the producer, said gases thereafter passing off laterally through the pipe m to the dust extractor J. N is a pipe which in conjunction with the water seal it acts as a safety device for releasing any excess pressure which may be caused by accidental explosions.

The aforesaid process and apparatus is also applicable to the treatment of other materials, for example to the reduction of ores, and the treatment of sewage with recovery of the volatil vconstituents contained therein. In the caseF-of ores, theore which a controlled volume of superheated steamv into a combustion zone at a plurality of.

combustion zone from the opposite end of the gas producer, so as to gasit'y said last mentioned carbonaceous. material.

2. A process of making producer gas, which consists in continuously introducing powdered solid carbonaceous material and admixed air longitudinally at one end of a gas producer with sufiicient speed to keep the solid particles in suspension, coinbusting saidpowdered material and air, introducing a contr( illed volume of superheated steam into the COIIlblutiOn zone at a plurality of points along the length of the gas producer, continuously moving solid carbonaceous material longitudinally forward into the combustion zone from the oppositeend of the gas producer, so as to gasify said last' mentioned carbonaceous material, and removing the ash at that end ofthe gas producer 1 is to be reduced such as iron oxide is introduced together with a quantity of powdered carbonaceous material 'toone end of the retort by means of a' conlveyor or otherwise where it meets the stream-of,.; combustion gases entering at the other end of the retort and produced by the combustion of powde'red fuel and, air or steam in the manner previously described. In the case of sewage the material to be treated, after bein dried and reduced if necessary to powdered form, may be introduced at one end of the retort where as before the material during its pas which consists in continuously introducing powdered solid" carbonaceous material and admixed air longitudinally at one end of a gas producer with sufiicient speed to keep the solid particles in suspension, combusting said powdered material and air, introducing The volatile constituents yielded up 

